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1.2.1-Columbina
Brick!Club 1.2.1: The Evening of a Day of Walking I AM SO HAPPY THINGS ARE EXCITING AGAIN THINGS ARE ACTUALLY HAPPENING PRAISE JESUS HALLELUJAH Also I’m actually writing sober? Will the wonders of Book Second never end? Okay, I’m actually just writing sober because I’m procrastinating because I don’t want to study for my medical law exam but anyway. (And then I had to wait for it to actually be today in America and then I forgot but hey I’m here now.) But, okay so, first up: Are the townsfolk actually being out of line here? Not going to lie, if I was staying somewhere with the security level of your average 19th century inn (probably roughly comparable to your average backpackers’ hostel) I would not be super keen on having someone just out of prison under the same roof, and I’m going to put myself out there and say that I don’t think that makes me a terrible person. Of course, they still could have given him, you know, some food scraps or whatever. Still. I don’t even think we’re meant to blame the villagers as much as the system, so, you know. I mean, they either know he’s a thief, or they know he did something and their imaginations are free to run wild - I wonder which it is, and which is more damning for poor Valjean. Are they sending him away out of arguably well-founded fear or condemnation? I guess I lean towards condemnation, because if it was just fear, I imagine they’d be more like “Here, here’s some food, please just take it and leave us be”, you know? There’s a storyline going on at the moment in a show I watch (Nashville, spoilers for last week if anyone cares!) where a character’s parole-breaking brother was killed in a drug deal gone wrong (probably) and he doesn’t think the police are doing enough about it, because an officer straight up told him that his brother’s murder was pretty low priority because they’ve got cases where actual innocents have been hurt, unlike his brother who probably had it coming. And I’m just like no, mate, he’s got a point there. Of course, our beautiful young guitar player from Texas (bless this show) has a point, too, that his brother is still a human being and deserves justice. It also makes me think of those cases (at least on police dramas) where convicted pedophiles have their identities found out and the neighborhood turns on them and the Good Guys are like “I know I should feel sorry for him, buuuuut…” It’s like the whole town is having that reaction to him?Which is probably not incomparable to the Bishop and G? I’m not sure what my point here is - I suppose just that everyone kind of goes around thinking we’re decent people, but all struggle to be decent to people who have done things that directly insult our values. Anyway. I laughed so hard at the dog because OH MY GOD, POOR VALJEAN. I can just imagine him gathering up his little knapsack and fencing with the dog and being like I AM SO FUCKING DONE WITH THIS TOWN. This man was evidently very far from having those delicate habits of intelligence and spirit which render one sensible to the mysterious aspects of things“ I laughed out loud at this too. I am so glad we are past philosophy and back to sass. Still, this bit passed me by all together the first time I read it. I like this bit of divine intervention and the hill like a shaved head, and the entering through a breach in the wall and not the gate and the shaking his fist at the church omg Valjean you are throwing such a tantrum, and I am so glad to be back in chapters where I just want to quote every line and be like JUST LOOK AT HOW GREAT THIS IS UGH EVERY SINGLE SENTENCE IS EITHER HILARIOUS OR HEARTBREAKING. Except maybe the Labarre backstory, which was still more enjoyable than others have been and if you know of some significance in it, please share? And finally, Marquise de R——, please tell me more about yourself! HUGO STOP GIVING US BACKSTORIES FOR RANDOM INNKEEPERS AND TELL ME ABOUT THESE LADIES. BAPTISTINE, THIS MARQUISE. I know they say pick your battles and a battle against a dead white guy for mostly sticking to backstories for blokes is not a very smart battle to pick but he keeps writing these really fascinating female characters and not telling us about them D: D: D: D: Commentary Pilferingapples I also don’t feel like the townsfolk are exactly out of line— the papers say he’s a dangerous man, after all!— as just…odd. HE IS DANGEROUS. WHY ARE YOU ANTAGONIZING THE DANGEROUS GUY. If you DON’T think he’s dangerous WHY ARE YOU BEING A JERK. Also as someone with a lot of ex-felon family/acquaintances I just…don’t feel comfortable with the townsfolk in this chapter. I mean, the really dangerous people are the ones who manage to *dodge * the law, right? As we’ll see later on… And yeah, Marquise de R! Why was she out so late, on her own? What’s her part in the town? If she is deserving the term “good woman”, and she does seem nice enough, why can’t we have an extraneous paragraph on her history? Oh well. This is what fanfic is for, I guess! Columbina (reply to Pilferingapples) This is why I feel like it’s maybe more about condemnation than fear? (Which brings it back to hey, Bishop, you need to have a chat with your flock.) I mean, Labarre seems to me to be more concerned about the reputation of his establishment than he is actually afraid of Valjean. He keeps his voice low, he insists, however dubiously, that he’s being polite. As for the rest of them, it’s almost like the #safetytipsforwomen type mentality - that as long as you do the right thing, by treating criminals like dirt, nothing can possibly happen to you! I think this also makes more sense if they don’t know exactly what he went away for - they certainly know he’s a Bad Person, but they aren’t certain how much of a Dangerous Person he is? Also as someone with a lot of ex-felon family/acquaintances I just…don’t feel comfortable with the townsfolk in this chapter. I mean, the really dangerous people are the ones who manage to *dodge * the law, right? As we’ll see later on… And yeah, Marquise de R! Why was she out so late, on her own? What’s her part in the town? If she is deserving the term “good woman”, and she does seem nice enough, why can’t we have an extraneous paragraph on her history? Oh well. This is what fanfic is for, I guess! Baptistine and Marquise de R take tea together, anyone? Kingedmundsroyalmurder (reply to Columbina's reply) Can we have a series of fic about Baptistine hanging out with other women? Baptistine and her friend the Viscomtess, Baptistine and Marquise de R, Baptistine and Mme. Magloire, Baptistine and lady of choice engaging in ~youthful shenanigans~ (I just want younger Baptistine and the Viscomtess being awesome together and rolling their eyes at their menfolk.) Columbina (reply to Kingedmundsroyalmurder's reply) PLEASE. And then we can bonus backstory of that time when the Bishop wasn’t such an awesome bloke and Baptistine is all “Ugh, my brother is impossible” and then when he makes good, she is so proud, because I forget if we’ve actually been told, but my headcanon is that Baptistine is his older sister. And the souvenir that she mentions from the Viscomtess is a box full of very indulgent chocolates that she just happens to fail to mention to her brother and she and Mme. Magloire stay up late laughing at the Bishop’s latest sassy burns and eating chocolate while he’s off doing his stargazing. And her letters from the Viscomtess are always about the latest society drama llamas and she’s like “Wow, I definitely made the right choice coming out here, I don’t care how cramped we are.” Kingedmundsroyalmurder (reply to Columbina's reply) I believe she’s canonically younger, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t have an inverse relationship. I know I have a pair of friends where the biologically younger sister is the older one in the relationship. Ooh, yes! Maybe it’s Baptistine’s birthday and Mme. Magloire has been saving and one day while the Bishop is out Doing Good she goes to the next town over and picks it up and that night the two of them snuggle in Baptistine’s bed eating chocolate and gossiping. And she and the Viscomtess were totally children together, or maybe they went to the same finishing school, so the Viscomtess knows how to tailor her anecdotes to make Baptistine laugh and occasionally sends along a few francs and is like, “this is not for the poor, you hear? Go buy yourself something nice and then tell me about it.” Columbina (reply to Kingedmundsroyalmurder's reply) I LOVE THIS NEW EVERYONE TAKING CARE OF BAPTISTINE TROPE. Where the Bishop is too busy deeply contemplating things or is out sassing non-believers and everyone secretly pampers Baptistine in his absence. He has all of the poor people in France and she has her friends and her room full of Romans and secret trinkets. And all the townsfolk love her too because I bet she does her own rounds of visiting the poor and whatnot and they slip her the gifts the Bishop won’t accept and she is, or has become, unconscious of status enough that she enjoys a friendly supper with some local peasants as much as visiting the Viscomtess. Kingedmundsroyalmurder (reply to Columbina's reply) She totally gives back though. You know how the Bishop goes to see the rich when he needs money? Baptistine totally does the same. She keeps her old society friends and enjoys their company and when one of her brother’s flock needs something she makes veiled references to it and when her friends buy it she passes it along. And the children love her because she treats them like equals and will listen to their stories and look at their treasures. She can’t walk very far and she tires quickly, but she’ll sit on a rock in the sun and the children will cluster around her. And the women too come to talk to her and they commiserate about their absurd menfolk and she makes note of any health concerns they have and brings them up tactfully with her brother later. And the Vicomtess just rolls her eyes indulgently because Baptistine as always collected strays and tries to remember to ask about them when she writes. And she has her nephew keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn’t exert herself too much and gets enough to eat and sometimes he invites her to dinner on behalf of his aunt (and on her purse) and serves her rich foods and they talk and laugh late into the night and she goes home with little gifts that she is firmly instructed to keep and not pass on to the poor. (She does pass them on, of course, or at least most of them. But she has a few treasures of her own, small baubles that she keeps alongside the shiny rocks or bird feathers or carefully printed letters given to her by the children of the village.) Columbina (reply to Kingedmundsroyalmurder's reply) Yes, because any one who was a friend of Baptistine’s has to be a really decent person! After all, she’s been doing good deeds for even longer than her brother. I can see her being very popular when she was young, with her constant kindness and gentleness. Everyone keeps in touch with her because you feel like a better person just for knowing her. (Unlike the Bishop, who would see right through your little hypocrisies and call you on them and probably leave you feeling quite chastised.) Oh my God, actually tearing up over Baptistine with children. She would be great with kids because with her couch, she can understand what owning something special can mean. Where her brother would sell the gifts sent to him for cash for the poor, Baptistine would know that sometimes a pretty necklace or a lace handkerchief can be worth more as a necklace or a handkerchief then as a week’s worth of food, and especially so for children. (See also: Cosette and her doll) She knows the pleasure of owning pretty things, but gets just as much pleasure from seeing other people with pretty things. And Mme. Magloire’s gold cross definitely came through the same channels. Kingedmundsroyalmurder (reply to Columbina's reply) Yes, you absolutely feel like a good person and she lets you feel that way instead of forever pushing you to rise to her level. (Not that there’s anything wrong with urging your friends to grow as people, but it does get tiresome to be around that kind of person after a while.) And God, I so need to write something about Baptistine and children because it’s exactly that. She understands what it’s like and she respects that and she will make you feel special with just a smile. Where the Bishop brings relief and gratitude Baptistine brings hope that they will someday be great and wonderful and that’s just as important. (I’m not getting over this nourishing the soul vs. nourishing the body thing, by the way. ~grins~) Mme. Magloire’s necklace either came through those channels or was kept due to that philosophy depending on how long she’s had it. (Is she widowed, by the way? Do we have any clue how long she’s been with the Bishop and his family? I can’t remember whether it’s mentioned or not.) Columbina (reply to Kingedmundsroyalmurder's reply) Ohhhhh no. All this talk about Baptistine, and I hadn’t even started to wonder about what happened to M. Magloire and if there were any children and how they ended up married and ohhhhh no this will not end well. All we know, I remember because I was checking something else in chapter one yesterday, is that she was “of the same age as Mademoiselle Baptistine, and … after having been the servant of M. le Cure, now assumed the double title of maid to Mademoiselle and housekeeper to Monseigneur.“ I was thinking about it because it means that Baptistine didn’t join her brother until Digne, with no mention of what she was doing beforehand or why she decided to stop doing it. (I am going to go ahead and call ‘failed romance’, just to annoy Hugo.) So I assume Mme. Magloire must be widowed, to be able to pack up and shift towns like that, with children either non-existent or off making their way in the world. (Headcanon is a sweet, simple soldier boy who Mme. Magloire is ridiculously proud of, who comes to visit and has his own go at explaining to the Bishop why he really should get some locks for the doors and the Bishop smiles and quotes something at him but it goes right over the poor boy’s head.) Mme. Magloire and Baptistine being cute with kids ahhh. Baptistine being all inspirational and beautiful, Mme. Magloire chastising them then slipping them treats from the kitchen and providing too-practical romantic advice to young girls. (And sometimes husbands who find themselves in trouble with their wives.) So that between the three of them, they make a perfectly balanced nourishment team for both the souls and the bodies of Digne. Kingedmundsroyalmurder (reply to Columbina's reply) Oh Lord, I hadn’t considered children. I adore your soldier boy headcanon, which I am officially stealing for my own use. As for Baptistine, I’m thinking a relationship of mutual admiration that ended when he decided to dedicate himself entirely to God (because while I can see her being friends with the not entirely pious I find it hard to see her in a seriously relationship with one unless he was damned understanding and willing to accommodate her). Maybe one of her society friends’ brothers who had aspirations towards religion early but kept being tempted away by earthly pleasures and looked to her for guidance and steadiness. Someone a bit younger, I’m thinking, who was quick witted and maybe a little impulsive. So she has rather a lot of practice dealing with the whims of someone she loves and guiding them gently back onto the desired path. And he respected her absolutely and adored her and she loved him back and would have been happy to spend her life with him, only he always kind of meant to become a priest so he took a vow of chastity. So their relationship was intellectual and spiritual and it suited them both completely fine and she especially was far too well respected and loved for any salacious rumors to be spread about the nature of their encounters. And then he did actually take his vows, though as a monk instead of a priest, and they were parted. They still exchange letters occasionally and she has in her tiny stash of treasures a small painting of them he had commissioned one summer for her birthday. And yes! Mme. Magloire is the one you go to if you need advice, while Baptistine is always available for those seeking comfort. (Mme. Magloire is also the one who dispenses financial advice to those struggling because she knows all too well how to stretch a too small budget as far as possible.) Columbina (reply to Kingedmundsroyalmurder's reply) Baptistine to be sad about anything ever, including couches, because that is where this all started after all. (I was going to say where would we be if Hugo had just let her have the damn couch, but I suspect the answer is still ‘right here’.) I was thinking more along the lines of “The more you keep telling me she’s an ugly virgin, Hugo, the more I’m headcanoning the path of broken hearts she leaves behind wherever she goes.” BUT THIS IS MUCH BETTER, just the right amount of heartbreaking while still being tooth-achingly sweet.